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\f0\fs24 \cf2 (Image source: {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://english.people.com.cn/90777/8035568.html"}}{\fldrslt
\cf3 \ul \ulc3 People\'92s Daily}})\ \
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\b \cf2 BY ZACH TOOMBS \b0 \
\ \
There are several blogs dedicated to Facebook users taking the satirical \'97 and often
outright ridiculous \'97\'a0Onion website as cold hard fact. But when one of the world\'92s
largest newspapers does it \'85 it\'92s something truly special.\
\ The People\'92s Daily in China reaches an
estimated 3 million people \'97 and on Tuesday, its readers saw {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK
"http://english.people.com.cn/90777/8035568.html"}}{\fldrslt \cf3 \ul \ulc3 this}} on its homepage \'97
American newspaper names North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un the Sexiest Man Alive.\
\ Which is a very literal take on a purely humorous
article published by {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.theonion.com/articles/kim-jongun-named-the-onions-sexiest-man-alive-for,30379/?ref=auto"}}{\fldrslt
\cf3 \ul \ulc3 The Onion}} on Nov. 14.\ \
The People\'92s Daily pulled this passage from the satirical Onion article:\
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\f1 \cf2 \uc0\u8232 \f0\b "With his devastatingly handsome, round
face, his boyish charm, and his strong, sturdy frame, this Pyongyang-bred heartthrob is every
woman's dream come true.\'94 \b0 \
\ They also put together a truly excessive 55-photo
slideshow to accompany the story of Kim Jong Un riding a horse, joking with generals and
really just partaking in your typical authoritarian antics.\
\ Somewhat reminiscent of the {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK
"http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/09/vladimir-putin-action-man/100147/"}}{\fldrslt \cf3 \ul \ulc3 swashbuckling Vladimir Putin
photos}} that have made the rounds on the Internet.\
\ Although the People\'92s Daily failed to note
that the Onion article is meant for laughs only,\'a0it does fit nicely into the Chinese
paper\'92s agenda.\ \
\pard\pardeftab720\sa240\ql\qnatural {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/11/27/kim-jong-un-chinese-news-site-falls-for-the-onions-sexiest-man-alive-parody/#ixzz2DT37nq1s"}}{\fldrslt
\cf3 \ul \ulc3 TIME}} magazine explains:\ \
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\b \cf2 \'93The website \'85 regularly features positive reports on its even more authoritarian
neighbor, North Korea \'85 This time, however, \i People\'92s Daily
\i0 editors may have been a bit too eager to please.\'94
\b0 \ \
\pard\pardeftab720\sa240\ql\qnatural {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/28/iranian-news-agency-plagiarizes-the-onion/"}}{\fldrslt
\cf3 \ul \ulc3 A similar situation}} popped up a few months ago, when Iran\'92s state
run news agency picked up a fictitious Onion poll showing more rural Americans favoring
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over Barack Obama.\ \
No one can say The Onion doesn\'92t know how to keep a straight face. It took the People\'92s
Daily\'92s confusion and ran with it, providing this update on theonion.com.\
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\b \cf2 \'93For more coverage \'85 please visit our friends at the People's Daily in
China, a proud Communist subsidiary of The Onion, Inc. Exemplary reportage, comrades.\'94
\b0 \ }